14m travel with Etihad in five years

Having completed five years of operations today, Etihad Airways said yesterday it has flown almost 14 million passengers to date, on more than 87,000 flights to 48 destinations across the Middle East, Africa, Australia, Europe, North America, Africa and Asia.

The Abu Dhabi-based airline's fleet has also grown in the last five years to 39 aircraft, and will reach 42 aircraft by the end of this year.

"Since our inaugural flight, we have flown 14 million business and leisure travellers and built up a global network of 48 destinations, supported by one of the youngest and most environmentally-efficient aircraft fleets in the world," said James Hogan, Etihad Airways' chief executive. Etihad plans to fly 25 million passengers a year.